Excavator



R. LAIR EXCAVATOR Filed Ju j 5, 1926 3 Sheets-Sheet l 'l lllllllllllwuzukov Rah-H: L air ,2 i t v 7, Gummy 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 R. LAIRExcAVAToR Filed June 15. 1926 Aug. 14, 1928.

anoevdio'b I standing that it may be working upon'a hill.- side or upona surface which is not level.

i-4ofFig.2; Fig. 5 is an enlarged detail of a part. of

Patented Aug. 14, 1928.

PATENT OFFICE.

ROBERT LAIR, or KINGSTON, WASHINGTON.

; ExcAvA'roa Application filed me 15, 1926. Serial No. 116,178.

\ This invention relates to excavating or grading mechanism and seeksprimarily to provide a machine which may be readily manipulated to causean excavating scoop to travel over-a surface which is to be reduced andthen caused to carry the, load to a. place of deposit so that a fill maybe made. Another object of the invention is to provide means' wherebythe machine may be maintained in a level condition not-with- Theinvention also seeks to provide. novel means for manipulatingthe scoopand also novel means. for effecting travel of the machine from thecnt tothe fill and vice versa. The invention is illustrated in theaccompanying drawings and will. be hereinafter fully set forth. r

'In the drawings:

5 Figure lis a plan view of a machine embodying my present invention;

Fig. 2 1s a side "elevation of the same;

Fig. 3 is aft ransverse section on the line 3 -3 of Fig. 2;

4 is a transverse section on the line the steering mechanism;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged-sectional elevation of another portionlof thesteering mechanism. i

.In carrying out the invention, there 18 provided a main frame 1 whichmay be formed of channelbars to provide sills and cross beams in suchnumber and arrangement as will attainthe necessary strength andrigidity. and provide supports for the parts of the workingmechanism. Ator near the opposite ends of the frame 1 are secured the upright. frames2 which will generally be of arched construction, as shown most clearlyin Figs. 3 and 4. ,Upon the sides of the vertical end frames. 2 aremounted spindles 3 which .carry ground. wheels 4 attheir lower endssofthatthe ma i chine will be supported upon the ground and may readily.travel. thereover. The

1 spindles 3 are vertically slidable inguides,

indicated. at 5, u on the'outer sides of the a 1 respective end rames,and this slidable i mounting of-the spindles permits the wheels toassume any desired position vertically with respect to the main frame sothatthe frame will be supported at any "desired height abovethefsurfaceof the ground, and

also permits the wheels toassume different passes downwardlyfrom thedrumto and under a guide pulley 9 secured upon the main frame adjacentthe front end thereof, as shown clearly in Fig. 2, and then upwardly,the end ofthe cable being secured to the respectively adjacent spindle3, as.

also shown'in Fig. 2. At the outer end of each drum 7 is a ratchet disk10, and a pawl 11 pivoted upon the frame Q'iri any convenient orpreferred manner cooperates with thisratchet to preventreverse rotationof the drum so thatafter thecable hasfbeen wound to bring the fram'eintothe desired position the withdrawal ofthe moving'force will not resultina dropping of the frame but the frame will remain supported in. theposition in which it has been set. A clutchl2 whichmaybe of. anywell-known type and is illustrated conventionally is ar ranged tocooperate with each drum so that, when the cable is to be wound, thedrum may be locked/to the shaft 6 and, conse quently, rotate withltheshaft. If it be desired to lower the; frame, all that needs to be doneis to release the dog or pawl 11, whereupon the weight of the framewillcause the cable to unwind and permit descent of the frame. It willbeunderstood that, if the surface of the ground be uneven, the wheeletat oneside of thefmachine maybe per mitted to assume a lower positionrelative to the frame than the wheel at theopposite sideso that thewheels willbe accommodated to the inclination ofthe ground. The shaft 6is rotated by the power of a motor, indicated conventionally a e, and toeffect the rotation of the shaft Ga sprocket is secured thereon, asindicated at '14, and :a chain 15 is trained around the said sprocketand around a sprocket16 secured upon a shaft uponthe main framewhich..will be .presentlymore. particularly mentioned. Of course, whenthe fron-t end of the ma-. chine is adjusted to alevel position in themannerdescribe d, it will be necessary to adjust the rear end of. theframe likewise in order to overcome torsional strain and preventtwisting of the frame and this level? ing or adjustment of the'rear endof the frame is accomplished automatically. The spindles 3 at therearen'djof thema'ohine are similar to the spindles 3 at the front endthereof and are mounted in guides 5 in the same manner. The upperextremities of the rear spindles, however, are equipped with pins orstuds 18 which are disposed vertically axially of the respectivespindles and are fitted loosely through collars 19, the extremities ofthe pins or pintles being upset, as indicated at 20, whereby endwisemovement of the spindles relative to the collars will be prevented butthe spindles may move pivotally in the collars. Each col lar 19 isprovided with trunnions 21 at diametrically opposite pointsof its outercircumference and upon these trunnions is pivotally engaged a fork oryoke 22 at the lower end of a link 23, the upper end of each link beingpivoted to the end of a walking beam 24 which is fulcrumcd midway itsends in or upon a pedestal 25 erected upon the adjacent end frame 2 atthe top thereof, as will be understood.

The lower portion of each spindle 3 is circular in cross section, asshown most' clearly in Fig. 6, so that it may not only slideverticallythrough the corresponding guide 5 but may also turn therein while theupper portion of the spindle isfflat-sided in cross section to engageflat sided bore in the collar 26 which is fitted through the upper guide5 and is provided with flanges 27 to engage the upper and lower sides ofthe said guide whereby the collar will be prevented from movingvertically through the guide but may rotate therein. Of course, therotation of the collar will be imparted vertically to the spindle andthe spindles may be thus turned so as to set the ground wheels in anydesired angular position to effect steering of themaehine. Extendingrachally from the upper side of each collar 26 is a crank 27., "thecranks at either end of the machine being' connected for synchronousmovement bya connecting rod 28. One of the cranks is extended beyond theend of the connecting rod 28 and a link 29 is pivoted thereto. The link29 is disposed transversely of'the main frame parallel withtheconnecti'ng rod QSand the end of the link remote from the "crank ispivoted to the inner end of a threaded rod or worm 30. This threaded rodor worm is supported in a suitable bracket 31*secu'red to the sideof theadjacent end frame 2, and supported in the said bracket and in astandard 32 rising from the main frame is a shaft 33which is equippedwith a hand'wheel "34 at its free end. At the opposite end ofeachshaft33 is secured a beveled pinion 35 meshing with a similar pinion 36.arranged upon the threaded rod or worm between the pinion and theadjacent side of the bracket 31, as clearly shown in Fig. '5. The pinion36 meshes with the pinion 35 so as to be rotated by the latter and, inturn, has an internally threaded bore or hub which engages the threadedrod 30 in such manner that, when the pinion is rotated, the rod will becaused to move axially or endwise and this movement will be transmittedthrough the link 29 so that the spindles will be turned and the wheels 4set in the desired position. By this simple arrangement, I am enabled tosteer the machine from either end and may efi'ect the steeringoperations at both ends simultaneously so that, notwithstanding thelength of the machine, a short turn may be made under somecircumstances. It will also be understood that the steering operation isnot affected by the vertical adjustment of the main frame.

While I have illustrated the machine as equipped with an excavatin scoopor scraper 37, it is to be understood that it may be equipped with aplow or a scarilier or any other implement which will mostadvantageously break up and aid inremoving the groun surface under anygiven conditions. The scoop 37 is shown as being pivotally supported, asat 38, between the sides of the main frame at the front end of the sameso that it may be se't'at any desired inclination to take up a load ordischargea load and may be easily tilted into a horizontal position soas to transport a load. To effect adjustment of the scoop, a cable 39 issocured to the rear end of the scoop and 0X- tends upwardly to a drum40, which is loosely mounted upon the shaft 1'5 and is adapted to beconnected to said shaft by a clutch 41 of any approved type. the drumbeing pro vided with a ratchet 42 to be engaged by a dog 43 whereby itmay be held in a set position. When the scoop is to take up a load, thecable 39 is'wound upon the drum by locking the drum to the shaft,whereupon the rear end of the scoop will be lifted and the forward end,of course, "tilted downward so that the edge "of the scoop will dig intothe ground surface. When the scoop is filled, release of the pawl 43will permit the rear cndof the scoop to swing downwardly under its ownweight and the weight ofthe load, and this downward movement may bearrested at any time by throwing the pawl into engagement with theratchet. After the filled scoop has been brought into a level positionor into such a position that will support the load, the machine ispropelled to the fill and the scoop then tilted in the reverse directionto dump the load by e'lfecting rotation of the drum in the describedmanner. y i

If the frame of the machine is lev'ehthe scoop may be brought to a levelThen, bypermitting the front end of the ositiom machine to be lowered,the scoop will be inclined and assume a position in which it willtake'up a load, so that by merely raising or lowering the front end ofthe machine the desired operation of the scoop will be effected.

To effect travel of the machine, I provide cables 44 and 45 which extendlongitudinally of the machine and are to be anchored at points remotefrom the machine in any well known manner. From their anchors thesecables extend between a plural ity of guide pulleys 46 disposed at theends of the frame and are wound upon drums 47 and 48 respectively. Thedrum 47 is mounted loosely upon the shaft 17 which has been heretoforementioned and is adapted to be locked to said shaft by a clutch,indicated at 49, and which may be of any well known or preferred type.The drum 48 is carried loosely upon a shaft 50 which is similar to theshaft 17 and carries a clutch 51 which may also be of any approved formwhereby the drum 48 may be locked to the shaft. The clutches 49 and 51are controlled through hand levers arranged adjacent the hand steeringwheels 34, as shown in the drawings. Secured upon the shafts 17 and 50are gear wheels 52 and 58, respectivelyp which mesh with an idler gear54 carried by a shaft 55 mounted in suitable bearings upon the frame anddisposed between the drums 47 and 48. The shaft 55 carries a gear 56 atone end, and this gear 56 meshes with a pinion 57 upon the end of theengine crank shaft 58which is driven by the engine 13 and is equippedwith a fly wheel 59. It will be understood that the gear 57 is rotatedas long as the motor 13 is running and this motor may be of anyconvenient type. The rotation of'the gear 37 will be transmitted throughthe described train of gears to the gears 52 and 53 and, consequently,the drum 47 or 48 may be caused to rotate whenever desired bymanipulation of the respective clutches. Likewise the shaft 6 will becontinuously driven and either drum 7 or the drum 40 may be operated byproperly manipulating the re spective clutches. The guide pulleys 46 atthe ends of the machine are shown as carried by bracing arms 60extending from the end frames. These bracing and supporting arms'may beof any preferred form and any other form of support which will aid inimparting rigidity to the structure of the machine may be employed. Toimpart travel to the machine, the drum 47 or the drum 48 is locked toits respective actuating shaft accordingly as the machine is to proceedin one or the other direction. shaft and the drum 48 free, the cable 44will be caused to wind while the cable 45 \Vith the drum 47 locked toits As the cable 44 winds upon the 2 and when traveling in thisdirection the V scoop, if tilted, will obviously be caused to cut offthe surface soil and take up the same. If the place of fill is forwardwith respect to the machine, the scoop may be adjusted to a level orload-carrying position and the travel of the machine continue withoutinterruption, the scoop being dumped at the fill in the mannerpreviously described. To return the machine to the place of cut or tocarry the scoop rearwardly from the cut to a fill located rearwardlywith respect to the machine, the drum47 is released from its respectiveshaft and the drum 48 locked to its shaft, whereupon the cable 45 willbe caused to wind and the cable 48 will, of

course, unwind, the result being that the excavated easily moved to adesired fill and ous manner.

Having thus described the invention, I clalm: V g V 7 An excavatingmachlne comprislng a wheel-supported frame, means on the frame foreffecting travel of the same, a scoop pivotally mounted between its endsadjacent its bottom upon the frame at one end thereof, a' shaft mountedon the frame over the scoop, power means on the frame to rotate theshaft, a drum loose on the said shaft, means for locking the drum to theshaft, means to prevent reverse movement of the drum when unlocked fromthe shaft, and a cable secured to the drum and attached to the rear endof the scoop and arranged to unwind from the drumwhen the drum isunlocked from the shaft.

In testimony whereof I ailix my signature.

ROBERT LAIR. [1,. s.]

